Healthy Holidays Funded Active Leeds Intensive Swimming Programme
Children across the city are invited to attend intensive swimming lessons over the school holidays, in partnership with Healthy Holidays scheme, Zoggs and the Swimming Teachers Association.
Over the course of a week children are provided with swimming equipment (should this be required) and 45-minute swimming lessons for five days. The scheme is funded by the Department of Education’s holiday activity and food programme, which is locally called Healthy Holidays.
The Leeds scheme operates in partnership with the Leeds Community Foundation and other providers in the city and runs through schools, third sector organisations and council’s providers. This scheme is for children who are eligible for Free School meals (swimming specific criteria being children must be aged 7-12years).
It it's inception in 2021 the aim of the lessons was to ensure that children who had missed out on their swimming lessons due to COVID-19, were able to achieve at least one of the national curriculum outcomes by the time they leave primary school. Ensuring that children understand the dangers of water and what to do if they fall into an open body of water.
Learning to swim is an important life skill that often families from deprived communities only have the opportunity to develop through their limited school lessons. In five years’ time, only 35% of children from the most deprived areas of England in year 7 will be able to swim 25 metres. This is due to the impact of Covid-19 on school swimming and water safety. To help narrow the gap in Leeds the intensive swimming lessons so far have been delivered to 4000 children and with a further 1000 spaces for Easter and Summer 2024, Active Leeds will have helped over 5000 children confidently put their face in water, move independently through the water and learn how to raise the alarm in the event a friend gets into difficulty in the water.
If you are 2024 Healthy Holidays provider and interested in further information to deliver lessons in the 2024 Summer Holiday then please email schoolswimming@leeds.gov.uk.
For more information on the Healthy Holidays scheme, please visit Healthy Holidays (leeds.gov.uk)
Should your child have been identified through their school or Active Leeds school swimming teacher and you are looking for more information please see below.
Your child will have been identified for this programme as they meet a set criteria, mainly that they are aged 7-12years and are a non-swimmer or beginner. All identified children will have received a voucher specifically assigned to them, please take this to your preferred site from the list below so your booking can be completed. Please note places are on a first come first served basis.
Please find below some FAQs regarding the programme. Should you have any further queries please email schoolswimming@leeds.gov.uk
The Easter programme of available options is as follows:
|
Site |
2-5 April |
9-12 April |
| Aireborough | 08.30-09.15 | 08.30-09.15 |
| Armley | 13.00-13.45 | 13.00-13.45 |
| Fearnville | 09.30-10.15 | 09.30-10.15 |
| Holt Park | 10.30-11.15 | 10.30-11.15 |
| John Charles | 09.30-10.15 or 10.15-11.00 | 09.30-10.15 or 10.15-11.00 |
| John Smeaton | 13.15-14.00 | 13.15-14.00 |
| Kirkstall | 13.10-13.55 | 13.10-13.55 |
| Morley | 13.45-14.30 | 13.45-14.30 |
| Pudsey | 10.55-11.40 | 10.55-11.40 |
| Scott Hall | 13.00-13.45 | 13.00-13.45 |
| Wetherby | n/a | 09.00-09.45 |